Tell you what John Stossell, lets remove you from the city, send you out to rural America and put you to work on a farm. Apparently all this time in sky scrapers, airports and 4 star restaurants has given you some need for perspective.

HotIgneous Intruder:Is this the Stossel who has received government-subsidized insurance payouts on three separate occasions when his beachfront homes were destroyed by inevitable high water?Stossel is a master troll.

FTFA: When O'Reilly argued New Orleans might not exist in such a scenario, Stossel said, "So be it."

FTFWiki: The Port of New Orleans handles about 62 million short tons of cargo a year. The port also handles about 50,000 barges and 700,000 cruise passengers per year with several ships from Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian cruise lines making it one of the nation's premier cruise ports.

geek_mars:FTFA: When O'Reilly argued New Orleans might not exist in such a scenario, Stossel said, "So be it."

FTFWiki: The Port of New Orleans handles about 62 million short tons of cargo a year. The port also handles about 50,000 barges and 700,000 cruise passengers per year with several ships from Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian cruise lines making it one of the nation's premier cruise ports.

I think the nation's economy might disagree with Stossel's idiocy.

He would say that new ports would open up due to the demand.

It's not worth even trying to rationalize with someone like this, he can't see past his own over inflated ego, never mind "big picture".

Everything happens in a vacuum. Everything happens in a vacuum. Everything happens in a vacuum. Everything happens in a vacuum. Everything happens in a vacuum. Everything happens in a vacuum. Everything happens in a vacuum.

Ever notice that the ONLY things these idiots think taxes should be spent on is for the Military-Industrial Complex and to pay politician's salaries?

Tornado wreck your town? FARK YOU! YOU GET NO MONEY!

Drought destroy your crops? FARK YOU! YOU GET NO MONEY!

Bridges in desperate need of repair before it kills someone? FARK YOU! YOU GET NO MONEY!

How do you run civilization without spending government funds???

(no, the private sector is the LAST thing you want running things in place of a government! Go wiki up "The East India Trading Company", or rent a copy of Pirates of the Caribbean 2 if you're less literate)

spelletrader:geek_mars: FTFA: When O'Reilly argued New Orleans might not exist in such a scenario, Stossel said, "So be it."

FTFWiki: The Port of New Orleans handles about 62 million short tons of cargo a year. The port also handles about 50,000 barges and 700,000 cruise passengers per year with several ships from Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian cruise lines making it one of the nation's premier cruise ports.

I think the nation's economy might disagree with Stossel's idiocy.

He would say that new ports would open up due to the demand.

It's not worth even trying to rationalize with someone like this, he can't see past his own over inflated ego, never mind "big picture".

Yea, I know. But I'd really like to ask him, "If the government is 'for the people' then doesn't that imply that it has certain obligations to its citizens?" just to hear what he'd say. His answer would likely make my head asplode, but it would almost be worth it to see if he even thinks before replying.

Just another self righteous Libertarian who enjoys the benefits of the social contract known as government (which he's entitled to do as a taxpayer). But if YOU enjoy any benefits from that social contract .... well, then you're just a weak willed dependent person who isn't bootstrappy enough to get the teat of government out of your mouth. Guys like Stossel are all the same ... they enjoy talking about Libertarian utopias in an anti-septic textbook manne , but they don't have balls big enough to actually live without a cushy government provided safety net in real life.

I first got a taste of Stossel's crackpot-ery years ago when I heard him on 20/20 say that National Parks need to be broken up, parceled out and sold to private land owners, because private land owners would have more invested in their land and would take care of it better than the government ever could.

Yeah....

vs.

The only people who scare me more than the ones who preach about the inherent benevolent virtues of the collective and the ones who preach about the inherent benevolent virtues of the individual.

geek_mars:spelletrader: geek_mars: FTFA: When O'Reilly argued New Orleans might not exist in such a scenario, Stossel said, "So be it."

FTFWiki: The Port of New Orleans handles about 62 million short tons of cargo a year. The port also handles about 50,000 barges and 700,000 cruise passengers per year with several ships from Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian cruise lines making it one of the nation's premier cruise ports.

I think the nation's economy might disagree with Stossel's idiocy.

He would say that new ports would open up due to the demand.

It's not worth even trying to rationalize with someone like this, he can't see past his own over inflated ego, never mind "big picture".

Yea, I know. But I'd really like to ask him, "If the government is 'for the people' then doesn't that imply that it has certain obligations to its citizens?" just to hear what he'd say. His answer would likely make my head asplode, but it would almost be worth it to see if he even thinks before replying.

It is the government's responsibility to build and maintain Thunderdome. There should be no government beyond Thunderdome.

It's actually far too LATE to be auditioning for any holiday production. You need to have a cast together and be damn near ready to go by this point. Most holiday shows start their runs on Black Friday, which is only three weeks away.

When O'Reilly argued New Orleans might not exist in such a scenario, Stossel said, "So be it."

Whatever your opinions of New Orleans, there's no denying it serves several key functions for the country. And not just for getting drunk and finding a tranny hooker at 5am. If not of benevolence, the government needs to be there for pragmatic reasons.

I've never heard this guy issue a cogent argument in the whole time he's infected the airwaves. And once again, Bill ORLY seems positively normal when next to almost anyone else from the FOX derp brigade. And that...man that's just farking sad.

I know that I spend too much time talking about New Orleans, but it's a passionate topic of mine. So when some sh*tgargler like Stossel comes along and essentially dismisses me, my friends, and everything south Louisiana provides for the nation, I'm naturally going to be pissed off. Fark this guy with a rake.

And lot of you Farkers were saying the same thing, at the time. Must have been nice to be an armchair post-Katrina quarterback from some sh*thole suburb in Arizona, running your mouth about something you knew absolutely nothing about except for what your talking heads told you. It's been 7 years and I still think you suck.

If the only point that Stossel is making is that government support for people who build homes in dangerous areas is just going to cause people to stay in those areas and even more people to build in those areas then he is correct. It is an example community minded efforts having perverse or unintended outcomes. An argument can be made that if the government is going to help out then it should be immediate relief. Paying folks to rebuild houses in areas that private insurance companies do not consider insurable is bad idea. Offering public insurance to folks who live in areas where private insurance companies balk can be considered a bad idea.

Anyway Stossel has always come off as a bit of a jerk. Didn't he do that education episode where he examined public systems in other countries, saw how much better they were, and conclude that the US shouldn't have public systems?

MisterLoki:PiperArrow: Stossel himself once received $250,000 in FEMA money

Stossel himself once received $250,000 in FEMA money

Came to post almost exactly this. I was going to do the formatting and everything.

Stossel using FEMA money is the same as a rich guy minimizing their tax burden while suggesting the rich should pay more taxes. Just because you don't agree with the rules doesn't mean you don't take advantage of the rules.